Shardé Thomas (born January 1990,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, United States) is an American

fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

player in the vanishing American

fife and drum blues Fife and drum blues is an American folk music form derived from country blues, martial music tradition, and African rhythms. It is performed typically with one lead fife player and a troop of drummers. Unlike a drum corps, the drum troop is l ...

tradition. She is the granddaughter of

Othar Turner Othar "Otha" Turner (June 2, 1907 – February 27, 2003) was one of the last well-known fife players in the vanishing American fife and drum blues tradition. His music was also part of the African-American genre known as Hill country blues. Earl ...

, who founded the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band, and cousin to bandmate Andre Turner Evans. She plays a homemade cane fife.

Career

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

featured her grandfather, Othar Turner, in the 2003

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

mini-series, ''

The Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the African- ...

'', as a link between African rhythms and American blues. This concept was continued on the 2003 album ''Mississippi to Mali'' by

Corey Harris Corey Harris (born February 21, 1969, in Denver, Colorado, United States) is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Charlottesville, Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic ...

. The album was dedicated to Turner, who died a week before he was scheduled to record for the album. Thomas, then 12 years old, filled in for the recording sessions. In 2003, her band was at

South by Southwest Music Festival South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, T ...

. In 2008, she performed in "The Heritage Project" in New York City, and in 2009, at the

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of visitors to New ...

Discography

*2003: ''Goin' Over The Hill'' – Willy Deville Acoustic Trio *2003: ''Mississippi To Mali'' *2010: ''Hill Country Hoodoo'' – The Jake Leg Stompers *2010: ''What Do I Do?'' (CD Baby)

References

External links

''Blues Review''; Transporting Delta Tunes From the Farm To the City
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Sharde 1990 births Living people African-American women songwriters American blues musicians People from Mississippi Delta blues musicians American blues singer-songwriters Fife players 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century flautists